His tale to tell: James Baldwin and the artist as a hero in fiction.
Item
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Title
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His tale to tell: James Baldwin and the artist as a hero in fiction.
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Identifier
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AAI9630469
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identifier
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9630469
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Creator
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Jones, Jacqueline Carlissa.
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Contributor
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Adviser: William Kelly
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Date
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1996
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Language
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English
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Publisher
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City University of New York.
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Subject
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Literature, American | Black Studies
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Abstract
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This dissertation examines James Baldwin's concept of the artist as a hero as it develops in "Sonny's Blues," Another Country, Tell Me How Long the Train's Been Gone, and Just Above My Head. As Baldwin said in 1985, "every writer has only one tale to tell." His tale, taking the form of an artist narrative in which the rebirth of the artist is the central action, reverberates throughout his fiction. The texts covered in this dissertation all offer a multilayered portrait of the artist. Baldwin's ideal artist-hero must transcend categorizations related to race and sexual orientation to achieve artistic and personal success. In "Sonny's Blues" we see how arduous and potentially life threatening the journey to self-recognition is for the African American male artist. Profiling two artists, Another Country offers a similar view in that one of the artist heroes, failing in his attempt to redefine himself, commits suicide. The other artist in the novel, a more successful artist hero, embraces his sexuality in France and returns to the United States to continue his journey toward self-fulfillment. In Tell Me How Long the Train's Been Gone Baldwin critiques conventional notions of success by questioning the kind of achievement the creative person should seek. Finally in Just Above My Head, James Baldwin's last novel, we are again asked whether the artist can combine honesty in his art and personal life and achieve success. James Baldwin subtly acknowledges and challenges assumptions about his work, his desires, and his experiences through his sustained use of the artist as a protagonist. He has been unwavering in his exploration into the life of the artist since the publication of his first essays. The proliferation of artists in James Baldwin's novels are evidence of his desire to shift the focus of analysis of his work from general discussions of race and sexuality to an examination of the role and responsibility of the artist.
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Type
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dissertation
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Source
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PQT Legacy CUNY.xlsx
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degree
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Ph.D.
